Holden, WV

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Holden, Logan County, West Virginia

Island Creek Coal Company opened its first mines here. The company built a rail line to Logan and shipped its first load of coal from here in December of 1904. The community was named for Albert Fairchild “Bert” Holden (1863-1913) who was one of the founders of Island Creek Coal Company.

The 2011 winner of America’s Got Talent, Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr. lived here and it was also the former boyhood home of boxing Champion Jack Dempsey.

Holden, WV about 1948
Holden Theater and Drug Store about 1948. Photo taken by Rev. Robert and Jane Pritchard used with permission.
Holden, WV Aug. 8, 1926 Postcards
Island Creek Safety Club’s Second Annual Meet, August 8, 1926, Holden, W. Va.
Click for larger view or view super-size pdf.

Holden and Surrounding Area Photo Gallery

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103 thoughts on “Holden, WV”

    2. Loren Tomblin

      I knew Gordy, and Rosies. We called Gordy “Bear” if my memory serves me. Rosie passed from yares ago. Maybe in the mid-50’s. She was about 15 years old.

      Reply
  2. Mary Rod

    My grandfather owned The Kendall Furniture Store on Holden Road. I was wondering if you had any pictures of it? They lived in the house across the street, too.

    Reply
  3. Daniel

    Does anyone know of a baby named Diana Butcher(Fletcher) child of Leonard Fletcher and Linda butcher. She was 7 months old when she died at the Holden hospital

    Reply
    1. Bob Piros

      Daniel, you have the wrong info. Her record is at familysearch.org. Her name was Deanna Sue Fletcher, born in Indiana in 1967 and dying in 1967 in Williamson Hospital at the age of six months.

      Reply
  4. Bob Piros

    Does anyone know the name of the
    coal mine machine that a 1930s motorman
    might have operated and how did it work?

    My Dad Joe Piros Sr. at the age of 18 had
    his leg cut off above the knee.
    It took him two years to recover & be fitted
    with a wooden leg.

    He then bought a truck & went into business
    for himself.

    Dad lived in Frogtown in the Hungarian Community.

    Reply
    1. Douglas Dempsey

      Photo #72 in the Holden gallery shows a “motor” that a motorman operated. There were varying sizes of motors. Smaller “gathering” motors were used to gather cars into larger strings of cars that a larger “mainline motor” would haul to and from unloading points. The motors are direct current electric powered getting their power from a trolley wire with the iron track rails used as the return circuit.

      Motors typically were rated as to their weights, the smaller ones may be referred to as a 10-ton motor and a larger one as a 20-ton motor.

      An all-to-common injury to a motorman was getting caught against the roof and the top of the motor and being “rolled”, usually getting killed..

      Reply
      1. Bob Piros

        Douglas, thanks for your input.
        The Holden 1910 postcard photo I found.

        Also found some photos of the motor
        on the WV photos section of this Logan site.

        Found a couple of photos that show the cars
        being pulled by the motor on a Widen WV
        Coal Mine site.

        My Dad said that his motor was hit from behind
        by another driver who didn’t see him being off
        of his motor while he was trying to reset the links
        of the hauler he was pushing.
        He was trapped between the motor and hauler
        thus losing his leg as the result.

        Does this make sense to you or do I have my
        recall wrong?

        Reply
        1. Douglas Dempsey

          Your father’s accident is one of perhaps the most frequent accidents happening in coal mining when the underground haulage was by cars pulled by motors. For many, many years the cars used the “link and pin” coupling method to connect the cars. This typically required a worker to get between or reach in between the cars to align the links and insert the pins. Unfortunately, it was quite common to see miners with missing fingers or severely injured hands. When you saw these men on the street you automatically “knew” that they had worked as a motorman or brakeman.
          The motors were equipped with the link/pin coupling on each end. At the end where the motorman sat inside his compartment, he would usually have a stick or hooked rod that he could use to reach out and position the link on the car he was attaching to.
          Unfortunately, it was not until the mid-1970’s that mining laws required coupling designs that eliminated the necessity to go or reach between the cars to connect them. This led to development of various designs of “automatic couplers”.
          One of the most ingenious of the automatic couplers was invented and patented by Mr. Bill Dingess who operated a mine equipment repair shop near West Hamlin. At that time, although the “new” Dehue Mine was a conveyor belt haulage mine, it had several of its “old mine” track haulage coal cars that were used for supply cars. These cars were modified and equipped with automatic couplers by Mr. Dingess.

          Reply
          1. Bob Piros

            Douglas, I thank you for your wonderful
            expert history of the workings of the cars.

            You are a credit to this website.

            Yes many of these brave coal miners
            who lost some of their body parts
            were called by the Logan Draft Board
            during WWII to prove why they couldn’t
            serve in the military.

            My Dad was called twice.

  5. Ralph Jr.

    Been a lifelong resident of #20 Whitman. Would love to see some pictures of Whitman. If anyone has any pictures or know where to find any I would love to acquire some. I’ve researched Whitman quite a bit and have seen pictures of the #20 and #14 mines. Would love to see more of the coal camp of #20. Contact me if you could help.

    Reply
  6. Bob Piros

    Does anyone know the history of
    St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Holden.
    When was the Church built & torn down?
    Are there any photos of it?

    I understand that lots of the Hungarian
    people got married in it.

    Reply
    1. Douglas Dempsey

      Bob,
      If you look at the “Holden, West Virginia” Facebook site and do a search for “Catholic”, you will see two pictures that show people in front of the church. One of the pictures is two women approaching the front of the church. That picture is on various other Facebook sites where several people have “confirmed” it is the church in question.
      I will note that the picture of two women appears in the “ISLAND CREEK” sales brochure they published around 1950.
      The 1910, 1912, 1926 and 1928 USGS topographic maps all have a mapping symbol showing a schoolhouse at the location of the church and the 1963 USGS map has that symbol changed to show a church there.
      Good luck!

      Reply
  7. Douglas Dempsey

    We all are familiar with names of the early Island Creek Coal Company personalities such as William H. Coolidge, Albert F. Holden and Thomas B. Davis with the town of HOLDEN named after Mr. Holden, COOLIDGE AVENUE one of Holden’s two main streets being named after Mr. Coolidge and, presumably, the three DAVIS subdivisions near Curry Branch named after Mr. Davis.

    So, where did the name for BEE BEE subdivision come from? (I have seen that name also spelled as “Beebe” and as “BeeBee” on various Island Creek maps.)

    Brandon Ray Kirk’s May 14, 2018 blog is an article from the October 25, 1927 edition of the LOGAN BANNER that discussed Island Creek’s construction of the Mine #22 at Pine Creek. In that article, mention is made of the treasurer of the company who had been in that capacity for 25 years since the beginning of the company in 1902. His name was F.W. Batcheler.

    Undoubtedly, Holden town’s other main street of BATCHELDER was named after F.W. Batcheler.

    So? Where did the “D” come from?

    Did some map maker/architect make a typographic mistake in the beginning?
    Did the October-1927 LOGAN BANNER article spell the Island Creek treasurer’s name wrong?
    Or, perhaps it is a case that, due to our southern WV twangy dialect, we couldn’t keep our tongue rolled high in the roof of our mouth long enough to say “Batcheler” so we added the “D”

    DUH! I don’t know!

    Reply
    1. Jeanette M Justice

      I was born in Holden hospital in 1948, my dad worked in the mines at #21Holden, my mom told me the BB stood for BigBoss cause that’s where the Mine Bosses and rich people lived,but that was probably a nickname? And I dont know when it began to be called that.

      Reply
      1. Jeanette M Justice

        This is Jetty again, my parents and grandparents lived on Trace Brook, and my Aunt and uncle also, names were Adam’s, Trivette, Burchett. My mom remembered when a child rode a sled down the hill from the “Salvatti Mansion” and suffered a debilitating brain injury! My moms name was Corda Trivette, and her first boyfriend was George McCloud(whose dad was a mine boss), and her best friend was Martha McNeely! One of the black servants from one of the rich houses used to come down the road in a long black car and pick up some of the kids to take them to church in main Holden!

        Reply
        1. Jeanette M Justice

          Hello, me again, when my Grandfather Trivette worked in the mine, his leg was sure off just below the knee by a machine of some kind, and they buried it under the apple tree in the yard on Trace Brook where they lived, when my mom and I went back there to visit a few years ago and saw how everything had changed, (part of the houses and land were scraped off for the highway project) I have often wondered if they found a human leg bone, what they must have thought, or if nature had returned ‘dust to dust’ jetty

          Reply
    2. Douglas Dempsey

      WILL A STREET BY ANY OTHER NAME BE THE SAME??

      In Dwight Williamson’s recent article about company stores, he mentions the main streets of Holden as COOLIDGE and BACHELOR.

      BACHELOR? BACHELER? BACHELDER? BATCHELER? BATCHELDER?

      In the photo gallery under the HOLDEN topic of this website, photo # 43 (as of this date) is labeled as a circa 1948 photograph of Batchelder Street viewed from Trace Avenue.

      Nonetheless, I still think the correct name is: BATCHELER

      Reply
  8. Douglas Dempsey

    Currently for sale on Ebay is an Ebay item number 153538639252 which is a photo titled: “Island Creek Coal No. 1 Mine Logan County WV 1959 Koda-chrome orig 8 x 12 photo”.

    I do not recall there being any remnants of the No. 1 mine structures existing in 1959 at Holden (Logan County). It may be that the photo depicts structures that were at Island Creek’s operations in another county (or state?).

    Please review the picture and provide comment. Thanks!

    Reply
    2. Loren D Tomblin

      If my memory serves me correct the #1 was located just below the #21 but close to main Holden. I spent 10 days in Logan Hilton for a Halloween prank in the tipple. The mine had been closed for several years and the entrance had been shut.

      Reply
    3. Loren D Tomblin

      I remember the #1 mine. In 1958 i was nailed for trespassing and spent 10 days in the Logan Hilton. I won’t name the other two but CC Cambers said if he saw me on Monday I was going somewhere else. I was gone in to that Army right away. He was the best recruiter the Army ever had.

      Reply
    1. Kathryn Conley

      Kenny, I have heard those names my whole life. I was a baby when we lived at 22 but my parents, John & Freda Curry Barto grew up there & lived there part of their married life. My maternal grandparents were Weltha Kirk & Mayo Curry. My paternal grandparents were from Hungary, Magdalene & Martin Barto. I remember my Mammaw Curry being friends of Brookie & Stumpy. Weren’t they related to Nell Moore?

      Reply
  10. Lori

    Hi, Im looking for information about Frogtown. I have family (Materazzo family) that came from Italy and were miners for the Island Creek Coal Company in Holden, but live in the Frongtown area. How does that area relate to anything. What # mine will that relate to? Does anyone know if there is way to find out where someone may have lived or any mine records. I’m looking for info from the 1920’s through mid 1930’s. Thank you!!!

    Reply
    1. MIchael Taylor

      Frogtown was just above the Holden Hospital on the right before you got to the railroad crossing that used to be below #7&#8 mine.

      Reply
      1. Lori Pavin

        Thank you sooo much for answering my question!!!!Do you know anything about how people/miners were divided into which areas they lived of what mines they mined? Do you have any details about frogtown that you can share. I really appreciate any info. Lori

        Reply
        1. Jim Long

          Most of the communities were named after the mine numbers. Thus 7 & 8 communities were for mines number 7 & 8. Most communities had immigrants from a foreign country. I believe residents from 5 & 6 were from Italy, 7 & 8 were from Hungary, etc. I was born and raised at Holden where my grandfather was Chief Engineer for ICCC. for 35 years. My mother was Director of Nursing at Holden Hospital for several years.

          Reply
          1. Lori

            Jim, Thank you very very much for your reply. Any little bit of info I receive is monumental for our family. Do you know if there are any records from the the 1920-30’s of where people lived? Or employee records from then? Is there a local historian or historical archives that I might be able to make contact with? I thank you again, Lori

          2. Barbara Murray

            My grandparents were from Poland, and, apparently they lived in 5 & 6. I remember my mother talking a lot about the Italians

        3. Douglas Dempsey

          Lori,
          In the early 1900’s, Island Creek and other coal companies imported many workers from other countries. By the 1920’s, the number of imported workers was greatly reduced owing to World War 1 and immigration laws passed shortly after the war (and reduction of coal production when the war ended).
          Whereas the early Island Creek mines (1 thru 8) were fairly close together (“walking distance”), there was a coal camp at or near each mine. When newer mines were opened on Whitman Creek and at the Monaville/Rossmore area on Main Island Creek, they were some distance away from the older coal camps and by that time automobiles had become available. Nonetheless, Island Creek built coal camps near the new mine.
          So, a miner living at a coal camp at an older mine (i.e. Frogtown near Mine #7) may want to work at the new mine and live in the new camp. The new coal camps had much better housing and facilities than the older coal camps.
          Accordingly, your relative may have once lived at Frogtown but could have moved to Whitman or Main Island Creek later on. It is conceivable that your relative could have transferred to an Island Creek mine many miles away in the 1940’s-early 1950’s.
          In the late 1950’s, Island Creek started selling off their coal camp houses, mostly to the miners or their surviving family members that lived in them. If your relative bought one of those houses, the record of it would be available in the Logan County courthouse. If you followed the chain of title for such a property, you could find that location today and see if any remnants of the original house is still there.
          As for any other archival records for work records, etc., it is highly unlikely that any exist.
          Good luck!

          Reply
    2. Barbara Murray

      My grandparents came from Poland. Andrew Baran Sr. Not exactly sure which mine he mined but they did live in Holden and the kids (3 of them) went to school there. Does anyone recognize the name Baran? After my mother got her R.N. she worked at Holden Hospital. Mayme Baran. Anyone recognize the names?

      Reply
        1. Barbara Murray

          Thank you for information. Do you know if it would have been “modern”? Running water? Looks like it was one of the first.

          Reply
          2. Douglas Dempsey

            The West Virginia Geological Survey of 1915 stated that Holden had “a modern artificial water purification system”.

            The original coal camp houses for the miners were of simple crude construction. They had running water to them but they had outdoor toilets. There were no bath-rooms built into those houses.

            However, the houses for some of the supervisors and upper management employees had “indoor plumbing” (toilets, etc.).

            The coal camp houses at 5&6 were built early on in Island Creek’s activities and as additional houses were built in later years, it is likely that those houses were more modern and had indoor plumbing. Photo #103 is of some of the 5&6 houses and the outdoor toilets are shown. Photo #68 shows four large house with pyramid shaped roofs that had indoor plumbing. These houses are called “fore-man’s cottages in Photo #6.

          3. Bob Piros

            Doug, thanks for the info.
            Its good to know that there
            are other sources one can
            find when seeking answers.

  11. Debbie Swims

    i was raised at 21 holden my parents were ray and joy mcdonald i have two brothers william meeks and charles meeks charles passed in 2012 and one sister belinda mcdonald

    Reply
  12. Larry Bowen

    My name is Larry Dwayne Bowen , I was born in holden WV on march 16 1959 at holden hospital.
    MY MOTHERS WAS PATRICIA LILLIS GWINN FROM RED STAR WV HER PARENTS WHERE LAWRENCE GWINN&Charlotte GWINN MY MOTHER GOT PREGNANT WHILE IN HIGH SCHOOL/ MT. HOPE HS,I THINK MY MOM WENT TO HOLDEN WV TO GIVE BIRTH ,I BELIEVE WHE HAD FAMILY THERE ,I BELIEVE THERE LAST NAME WAS BELL ,I BELIEVE MY GRANDMA Charlotte GWINN HAD A SISTER THERE NAMED NELLIE. ANYHOW I AM SEEKING INFO ABOUT WHO MY REAL FATHER IS !

    Reply
    1. Constance Curry

      Have you tried testing with DNA?
      I suggest Ancestrys
      .They do Autosomal DNA
      (both sides..)

      My mom is remembering
      BOWEN families
      from that area.and era..

      I went to school with Bowens also.

      I moved from Logan for 4 yrs
      In 1960 -64
      and lived in Mt Hope.

      I went to School with 2 Gwinn sisters
      and they lived on our Street.

      Reply
      1. Mary Liljequist

        Larry, My mother was a Bowen in Holden WV and had 6 siblings. Her name was Virginia, her mom was Ina James Bowen from Inez KY. Contact me if you think that this might be important.

        Reply
  13. Loren Tomblin

    As a teenager back in the day I used to hang out in Holden and hitchhiked back to 22. If I missed the last ride, usually around 1130 PM I had the walk 22 Mountain from main Holden. Mamie was always a companion in my young mind.

    Reply
      1. Dave Copley

        Jim, this is Dave Copley. You’ve known me pretty much all my life. I’ve seen Mamie. So did Keith Sabo, Pete Codispoti, and Steve Carr. Saw her one night walking the 22 mine road between what we called The Rock and the Dip. I saw her photo for the first time around 15 years ago and it was the same woman we saw that night. A cold chill went up my spine when I saw that photo. It was really her. All of us guys believe in ghosts now.

        Reply
        2. Vicki Townsend Ducharme

          My parents were from Holden and Logan WV. The Gore and Townsend families. I believe my grandmother was a Copley. I grew up hearing stories about mamie!

          Reply
  14. Virginia Stepp the former Virginia Curtis

    Thank you for the walk down memory lane. I was born at the Holden Hospital on November 22, 1958. As a fourth grader living at Mud Fork, we would drive thru Holden. Even then it stood out as one of the more “influential” communities.

    Reply
  15. Bob Piros

    Yes Holden had a lot of wonderful black & white
    people who lived there during the 1950’s as my
    Dad Joe Piros use to sell them produce & eggs.
    He had a couple of delivery trucks.

    Reply
  16. roger gallion

    My name is roger gallion ,my dad had the garbage trucks back in the 60s&70s. holden was the best place to grow up in i went to holden jr high,the best school ever was .had the greatest cook ever ,miss burroues

    Reply
    2. Damer Gore

      my brother (Allen Gore) worked for OKEY GALLION during that time frame. My name is Damer Gore. Lived at 21 Holden

      Reply
      1. Jeanette M Justice

        Do you know a person called ‘Gordy Gore’? I have a picture of him as a young person from my grandmother’s photo album

        Reply
        1. Damer Gore

          Gorden Gore was my dad. He was known as Candyman by the staff at Holden Hosp. Feel free to contact me.I would love to have a copy of the photo.Contct me at 904-697-6788. Thank you very much.

          Reply
      2. Loren D Tomblin

        I remember the Gore family. “Bear” was a friend of mine. I also remember his little sister that passed. Rosie was a very sweet kid.

        Reply
  17. Michael (Mickey) Hayner

    Back in the 1950’s, Appalachian Power in Logan would rent the pool at the rec. center in Holden 1 evening per week. Spent a few hot summer evenings in the refreshing pool. A real treat in those days. Had to drive from Chapmanville. Michael (Mick) Hayner

    Reply
    1. sandra maynard pinkston

      I went to the pool from Trace Creek by bus almost every week at least one day! Great fun! Probably 1950-52

      Reply
  18. sandra Maynard pinkston

    Are any of the houses at #21 still standing and are there any pictures? I was born there in 1943 to Bill and Golda Maynard.

    Reply
    1. Michael Taylor

      21 Holden was taken by the US 119 Appalachian Corridor “G” project and there remains only a few houses on the upper end near the foot of #22 Mountain

      Reply
  19. Charles D Isaacs

    Thanks for the look back. My earliest memories of Holden were from the 1960s. My mom used to go to my Aunt Iris Browning’s beauty shop. I would hang out in the pharmacy/soda shop. It was a really nice neighborhood. The Island Creek Store was still in operation and so was the school.

    Reply
  20. Pam Vance Matney

    My parents met in holden while staying with their sisters. Each lived in split, two story housing, and according to my mother talked over the bannister. She left for a short time to work in a ammunitions plant in Maryland. After marrying they moved to holden for a while before eventually settling on Trace Creek. Should have been in the early forties.Millard Vance and Dixie Preece. My Aunt Leilah Vance Allman lived many years there and her son still resides there. She was a nurse at Logan General. Wonderful memories of her and my Grandmother Betty Ann Vance, who also lived in holden. Many family members in and around there. Love these pictures.

    Reply
    1. Barbara Murray

      my mother Mayme Baran was an RN and worked at that hospital. Must have been around 1933 or so. My grandfather Andrew Baran Sr. was a coalminer in Holden.

      Reply
  23. Rick Evans

    My dad William Evans used to work at Island Creek #25. We lived at Chattaroy . He and a few other would ride together. This would have been late fifties and early sixties.

    Reply
  24. Sandy Shea

    Does anyone know where Fred and Polly Wooten lived in Holden? Might anyone have a picture of the holler or the house?

    Thanks,
    Sandy Shea

    Reply
    1. Bob Piros

      Sandy & to all others looking for relatives,
      this website has some old phone books that
      one can look through in searching where
      their relatives might have lived.

      Reply
  25. Douglas E. Nelson (Gene)

    My Name is Gene Nelson, Number 5 and 6 Holden is where I was born on April 21st 1943. I was born in a boarding house around the side of the jr. high school. My Mom and Dad were Joda Mae (Watkins) Nelson, my dad was Eli Zion Nelson. Dad lost both of his legs in a mining accident in 1947 in a mines in Big Creek.

    Reply
    1. Barbara Murray

      Hello, my uncle Stanley Baran learned to play the piano at that boarding house. I would have to look up exactly where my family lived there.

      Reply
  26. Barbara Murray

    Correction to the Baran comment.
    My grandfather was Andrew Baran, Sr. Sons: Stanley (named after his brother Stanislas (sp?) in new Jersey and Andrew Jr. One daughter (my mother) Mayme born August 4, 1912 in Utah.
    They must have moved to W.Va. while she was very, very young.
    Barbara Baran Roberts Murray

    Reply
  27. Barbara Murray

    Does anyone have any memories of the Baran family? My grandfather Stanley Baran was a Polish immigrant. His wife, also a Polish immigrant, was Marianna. They had three children: Stanley Jr., Andrew, and Mayme.
    My grandfather worked in the mines and my uncle Andrew repaired the coal mine trucks.
    I thought there was a boarding house in Holden where my uncle Stanley taught himself to play the piano.
    My grandmother Marianne is buried somewhere there (she died in 1940) and Andrew, his wife Mayme Skibo, and Stanley Sr. all moved to Florida in the 1950s.

    Reply
    1. Bob Piros

      Barbara,familysearch.org shows the
      death record for Marianna,born in
      1888 & she died in 1940.
      She is buried in Logan Memorial Park,
      McConnell,WV.
      Shows her husband as Andy Baran Sr.

      Reply
  29. Bernard Humphrey

    I have enjoyed looking at the pictures of Holden, I lived in Holden with my parents while my Dad was working in the mines, My Mother passed away in 1939 and i was 7 yrs old. and we moved away. The only thing I can recall living in the last house on the street and a church across the street and up the Hollow was dairy farm. also I recall playing in the street when a young man had a bobcat on pole that he has trapped.
    I was back this past summer to long a go, could not find anything.
    also my Grandfather Humphrey was a ,mine inspector in Holden, during this time.
    Any info drop me a e-mail Thanks and God Bless.

    Reply
  30. Barbara

    Hello Everyone,
    Just looking for any info on Holden, WV as my mom (now almost 92 years old) was born there. My grandparents were Bert & Lena Mezo, Hungarian immigrants. He worked in one of the coal mines. They lived at 304 (?) Curry Hollow in Holden when my mom was born in the early 1920’s. I went there with my parents in the 1990’s & it was just a small road facing a very little stream with maybe 6 small cape cod style homes…not too far from the hospital I think. Can anyone supply info or a link to maps/photos of Holden and the surrounding communities in the years 1920 to about 1937? I’d appreciate a photo of that road/homes from that period or later. Does anyone know of my mom’s family…Albert, Teddy, Olga, Blanche, Julius, Alex, Kelly, Elizabeth, Esther? At some point, the family also lived in Sarah Ann & finally in Whitman before moving to NYC. Many thanks!

    Reply
  31. Dwain Schroeder

    I am interested in finding out the exact location of the famous Mingo oak tree. I know that it was about 5 miles west of Holden along the Trace Creek, and that there was once a small park there. There were regular services held there, probably back in the early 1900s. The tree died and was cut down, I believe in 1938. Does anyone know of a map etc that would better describe the location of the park. Is the park, or remnants of the park still there? thanks, Dwain

    Reply
    1. delsphotos

      The Mingo Oak was over they hill from Trace Creek, on the upper part of Pigeon Creek. In today’s terms, if you were at the gap on US119 where the turn to 22 mine is, and headed west, within a mile or so the location of the oak would be down the hill to your left. Sorry I can’t be more precise.

      Reply
    2. Jim Ascough

      There used to be a slice of the trunk in the state museum. The stump was still there in the ’40s when I was young.

      Reply
      1. Pat Staley

        Jim did you live in 2 story house on hill up from # 7 mine years ago and had sister name Patty? If so I was your neighbor at one time in the other house
        Patty (Lycans) Staley

        Reply
  34. Heather

    Hi, I am looking for information on my ancestry from Holden, WV. Names are Johnson (Bethard, George), Clark (William and Martha), Allen (Martha), Ghee (Thomas and Sarah), Marcum (Rena or Toni), and Adkins (Regina or Dodie). Any information would be very helpful. Thank you. 🙂

    Reply
    1. Eudora Milligan

      I knew a Dodie,she was married to Carl Johnson,who was the pasture of Shamrock Freewill Baptist Church they left Holden and I believe moved to Indiana or Illinois when I was a child.

      Reply
    2. Raymond Edward (Eddie) Adkins

      Hi Heather. My name is Eddie Adkins. Martha Clark was my grandma Adkins’sister. I remember Bethard and Ollie Johnson, and their children: Carl, Tuggy, Glenda Faye, Leonard, and Macky. I know some more about your ancestry and even have a couple of pictures of grandpa and grandma Clark.

      Reply
      1. Daniel

        Did you know a Vivian Johnson, her sister Effie Mae and brother Dillard? Their parents were Vester Johnson and Bessie Spaulding. I am Vivian Johnson’s grandson, she passed in 2004. They lived in Frogtown. Any pictures or memories are appreciated.

        Thanks

        Reply
        1. Heather

          Oh my goodness! My Dad and I were just talking about your family today lol. Look me up on facebook. 🙂 Heather Sheets in Mountain Home Idaho.

          Reply
          2. Daniel@omsitransmissions.com

            I asked my mother (her daughter) and she said yes she was married to an Orville when she was young. My grandma did remarry and had 4 daughters. They lived in Eastlake, Ohio.

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